It's almost that time again. Time to head back into the classroom and prepare for a new year! One of my favorite things to get ready for the year is to look for a new back-to-school read-aloud or two. Read-Alouds are essential at the beginning of the year. They are a great way to have students practice coming to the carpet, being a patient listener, and knowing when and how to ask questions. By choosing great books, you can explore so many concepts: growth mindset, first-week jitters, behaviors and expectations. Today I wanted to share 15 books that are perfect for the beginning of the year. These are books I haven't shared before, but you may also want to check out my posts on Picture books for Phonemic Awareness and Growth Mindset with Rosie's Glasses. Click on any of the titles to view the read-aloud on Youtube! For links to purchase the books, visit my Amazon storefront here, where you can find all of my recommended ... read more
How To Set Up Your New Classroom Stress-Free
I absolutely loved setting up my classroom! I know I may be in the minority on this, but I was the one calling the office every day to check if the rooms are done, then going in any free moment to organize every millimeter. By October, it's all a mess but I enjoy making a beautiful, organized space even if it's fleeting. Whether you're like me OR you prefer spending as little time as possible prepping your room before school starts, OR you're moving into a new classroom, here are some tips to help you set up your classroom stress-free! And if you're a new teacher, make sure to read this comprehensive post on organizing your classroom and grab the free beginning of the year checklist. Step One: Plan Out Spaces When you first walk into your new room, it can be overwhelming with everything that needs to be done and you may not know where to even start. I highly recommend planning out how you will use the space first and ... read more
A Beginner’s Guide to Writing Workshop in Kindergarten & First Grade
In terms of both support and resources, writing seems to take a back seat to reading in many districts. Some teachers are given curriculum that's either overwhelming, not developmentally appropriate or nothing at all. So, today I want to go through each component of the Writing Workshop in detail to help you implement it in your classroom. There are many benefits to incorporating Writing Workshop into your classroom, especially in Kindergarten and First Grade! If you are not familiar with this model, Writing Workshop is a method of teaching writing that consists of four main components; a mini-lesson, independent writing time, and sharing, as well as conferring with students about their writing. Its goal is to expose children to different genres, and teach them how to compose a writing piece in each genre, while learning about the writing process. It's a very flexible system that you can use with the resources you have. This ... read more
End Of The Year Student Gift Ideas
It's almost that time of the year. I'm sure many of you have already started counting down the days! While the end of the year is an exciting time for students, it can be a LOT of work for teachers. Between organizing, packing, writing report cards, and classroom management, we still make time to celebrate our students. You don't have to spend a whole lot on end-of-year gifts for your students! But, I know many teachers like to send their students off with a small gift so today, I want to share ten inexpensive end-of-year gift ideas for your students. 1. printable bookmark One inexpensive/no-cost gift idea is to give your students a bookmark to encourage summer reading. I have a free set of ocean-themed bookmarks here! I also have some cute colorful punny bookmarks that match some of my EOY student awards. And of course, what goes better with a bookmark than a BOOK! Scholastic has books for under two dollars ... read more
Books That Are Perfect For The End Of The Year
The end of the school year is a time of mixed emotions. Students have worked hard all year and are almost at the finish line. Some may be excited for their summer vacation, while others may feel anxious to say goodbye. All these emotions can make classroom management a bit of a struggle! However students may be feeling, one way to help them through this transition period is with a good story! Today I wanted to share some book recommendations that are perfect for end-of-the-year read-alouds. I have divided up the books into different categories, but there may be some overlapping themes. School-Focused WHEN IT'S THE LAST DAY OF SCHOOL BY MARIBETH BOELTS A young student is excited for the last day of school. He shares all the different things that he will and will NOT do on the last day of school. The focus is on his behavior. This book is a great way to remind students of classroom expectations while also ... read more
ELEVATE Conference for Kindergarten to Second-grade teachers
Hey, teachers! It's almost the end of the year for most of you and I know you can almost taste the saltiness of the beach air and the sweetness of a piña colada! The summer is a time when you hopefully get to relax, let loose, and have fun! But, it's also a time when you can recharge your teaching passion and fill your teacher cup with new strategies to make next year a bit easier. So I wanted to let you know about an opportunity to do just that! Greg and Jason from The Kindergarten Smorgasboard are hosting an amazing virtual teaching conference this summer, ELEVATE 2022. Read for information on this must-attend event and enter at the bottom of this post for your chance to win a free ticket! What's included with the ELEVATE conference ticket? With your ticket (which you can grab here), you'll have 90-day access to all of the awesome content below, beginning on June 1st! Start with these 3 amazing keynote ... read more
How To Plan a Writing Celebration in Writing Workshop
You finished your writing unit and kids worked hard to plan, write, revise, and edit their stories. You worked hard conducting mini-lessons, conferencing, and guiding kids to become better writers. The writing unit is over and you're about to start a new genre. But, wait! Celebrate all of that hard work with a writing celebration! A writing celebration is not just a way to acknowledge the hard work that went into writing the current pieces, but it's also a way to remind kids of everything they learned, as well as motivate kids for the next genre (unless it's your EOY writing celebration)! Kids love to share and celebrate and knowing they'll partake in a culminating event helps to motivate them throughout the unit. What to include in your Writing celebration At the end of your writing unit, have an author's celebration, or publishing party. Each celebration can be different and they don't have to be complex. The basic ... read more
Discover New Mentor Texts for Your How-to Writing Unit
Procedural writing or "How-to" is one of my favorite units to teach during Writers' Workshop! There are so many fun ways to introduce the unit that will engage students. One of the best ways to help students during any writing unit, however, is the use of mentor texts. Mentor texts provide concrete examples of great writing and are motivating! Like I've said before, kids love to emulate authors they admire. In this post, I’ll share some great picture books to use as mentor texts for how-to writing in your classroom, along with a few mini-lesson ideas. This post includes affiliate links, which means I get a small percentage if you purchase through the links, at no cost to you. View my entire Amazon list of Mentor Texts for How-to Writing here. How to be a Cat by nikki mcclure The book is quite simplistic, only featuring one word per page. The story is about a young kitten who is learning how to be a cat. This is a ... read more
The best books for Teaching sequencing and retelling
Recently on my blog, I discussed the importance of teaching sequencing with teaching tips and activity ideas. One of my tips for teaching sequencing was to practice with simple texts. Texts that have a clear beginning, middle, and end. Today, I wanted to share 16 of my favorite books for teaching sequencing. When making this list, I tried to have a balance between relatively newer books and some classics that will most likely be in your school library. Missing from this list are Jan Brett (The Mitten) and Laura Numeroff (If You Give…) as their books are among the first that come to mind when thinking about sequencing books. You are most likely using these books for your sequencing lessons already as they are fantastic. I have a Sequencing and Story Retell Pack for Laura Numeroff Books in my shop. Some of Jan Brett's books, as well as many listed below, are included in my Sequencing and Story Retell Pop-ups and Pocket ... read more
Story Sequencing and Retelling With Pop-up Scenes
If you teach pre-K, kindergarten, or first grade, you know how important retelling a story is. Language, comprehension, story vocabulary....there are so many skills covered when students practice retelling! One of our favorite ways to retell stories was acting it out, whether using pieces on a pocket or with popsicle stick puppets. Both of these are always a lot of fun, BUT they take time to plan, make, and organize. Sooooo, I revolutionized the "worksheet" into . . . Story Sequence Pop-ups! These are All-in-One sequencing pages where kids can: Cut out the story piecesAct out the story with the backgroundRetell the storyGlue to sequence the events ALL ON ONE PAGE! Having everything on one page helps by: Saving spaceSaving paperLess confusing- sometimes kids have difficulty managing more than one pageMaking it more fun! Kids can pop-up the background for a built-in "puppet theater. Here's how the Story ... read more